Alexander
led the successful coalition war against Napoleon,
following the French invasion of Russia
in 1812. Alexander I was the most enigmatic of Russia’s
rulers. His charm and affability allowed him more easily
to pursue often-contradictory policies. His reforms,
especially before 1811, strengthened legal order and
the state while preserving autocracy. Yet he granted
constitutions to Poland and Finland, and freed the serfs
in the Baltic provinces. In his later years he turned
toward mysticism and grew increasingly conservative.

Alexander
I took a still more self-effacing stance than his father,
Paul I, in coin design. He did away with Paul’s
cruciform Imperial cipher theme and the religious device – “Not
unto Us, Not unto Us, but in Thy name” – and
opted for the Romanov double eagle and the rather bland
inscription, “Russian
Government Ruble Coin,” on the reverse side.

Two
silver rubles

The
first coin, 1802, is engraved with the inscription, translated
from the Russian,
as State Russian money, “Gosudarstvennaia Ross. Moneta”.

Collection of Coins and Medals
Yale University Art Gallery
2001.87.275